Amritsar MC nod to over 50 development projects

Charanjit Singh Teja

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 14

The Municipal Corporation of Amritsar (MCA) held its general house meeting and gave the nod to more than 50 proposals of various development projects here today. There was a brief discussion on a few proposals and four proposals are pending to be discussed in the next house meeting.

Two proposals to end services of safai karamcharis and a horticulture worker was kept pending. Another proposal of giving the contract of mechanical road sweeping to a firm is also pending. Four different proposals related to water supply, sewerage, installation of tubewells and street lights would be discussed in the Finance and Contract meeting on December 17 and then would be approved.

On the recommendations of a few councillors, the general house of the MC tabled an agenda to consider the notices served by previous MC commissioner Malwinder Singh Jaggi as illegal and personal vendetta. Jaggi had issued notices to Mayor Rintu to pay Rs 74,26,800 as rent and power bill of MC commissioner’s residence, corporation house.

Priyanka Sharma, councillor from Ward No.13, stated in the proposal that the the Corporation House, Mall Road, Amritsar, was set up as Camp Office for the Mayor during the pandemic. Malwinder Singh Jaggi, previous commissioner, MCA, had served notice on the Mayor concerning rent and other dues for usage of corporation house. The councillor claimed that first citizen of the city was legally entitled to avail residential accommodation and other facilities as per provisions of Section 38 (5) of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, the said notices are not only illegal, perverse, beyond the authority of Commissioner and sheer misuse of position but also derogatory to the office of Mayor and Municipal Corporation as well, which is an elected constitutional body.

“The said notices are a result of frustration and ill will of the then commissioner and a glaring example of personal vendetta as the Mayor has foiled the attempts of the then commissioner to get encroached upon valuable land of the MC land on the Lawrence Road to his near and dears or for some extraneous circumstances,” wrote Sharma.

Sharma proposed action against Jaggi and stated that the Mayor being constitutionally elected head of Municipal Corporation is entitled to residential accommodation and other facilities as per Section 38 (5) of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, and whenever any property being used by the Mayor to carry out the functions was conferred upon him by law and the corporation, the corporation will bear the expenses of the same. If some prior approval was required, the house unanimously approves the same ex-post-facto since the joining of the Mayor,” reads the proposal.

Pending payments: Oppn, Cong oppose move

• Jagdish Kalia, Congress councillor from Ward No.72, raised the issue of the pending payment of Corporation House loudly, but the Mayor announced to end the meeting without hearing him. Sandhya Sikka, opposition leader in the House, and some Congress councillors also raised the issue of payment of dues by the Mayor.
• “The Mayor should discuss the Corporation House issue in the meeting. They have tabled the agenda secretly. Even ruling party councillors are asking the same questions but we are not getting any appropriate reply. Even for these simple questions, a baseless blame game begins. We residents need answer that why the Mayor is not paying pending rent and power bill of Corporation House, though the commissioner issued notices,” said Sikka.

Handing over gaushala to Trust: Panel formed

There was a proposal of the MC to hand over the gaushala at Guhmanpura to Delhi-based Kamadhenu Gaudham Trust. Senior Deputy Mayor Raman Bakshi opposed the move and claimed that better option could be explored locally. Mayor Karamjit Singh Rintu constituted a two-member committee, including Raman Bakshi and Vikas Soni. The committee will submit a report on the next meeting of the general house.

Two-minute silence for Rawat

Earlier, Mayor Karamjit Singh formally inaugurated the meeting. A two-minute silence was observed as a tribute to CDS General Bipan Rawat who died in a chopper crash and other eminent personalities, who have passed away recently. During the meeting, the House felicitated Sandeep Rishi, who was appointed as the Commissioner, MC